What camera should you buy?

I am often asked this question by people who want to improve their photography. Here is a response, in the form of a series of questions and choice points.

1. Do you want to shoot in bright sunlight?

If you want to take photos in situations where sun might be landing on the camera, you really need a view-finder. Then you can put your eye to the camera and see what you are looking at. Cameras without a viewfinder are difficult to operate in bright sun.

Mobile phones and cameras with only a screen on the back might not suit you.

2. When you look through the view finder, do you want to see a tiny ’TV screen’ or see an image similar to looking through binoculars. 

The tiny TV screen is called an Electronic Viewfinder (EVF). Modern ones are getting pretty good, and some people prefer them. It's probably a good idea to have a look through some in a camera shop. If the EVF is acceptable to you, then it opens up a range of options, including ‘Point-and-Shoot’ cameras and ‘Mirrorless Cameras’. 

If you prefer the ‘binoculars look’, then you want a type of camera called a Digital Single Lens Reflex (DSLR). That viewfinder is called an ‘Optical Viewfinder’.

Here is an article comparing Mirrorless and DSLR cameras.

3. Do you want to take photos with shallow 'depth of field’ (DoF).

Depth of field refers to the range in the photo where the subject is sharp, rather than ‘out-of-focus’ and blurry. In general, photos of landscapes want to be sharp from foreground to the distance (deep DoF). However portraits often look good where the subject is sharp, (especially their eyes), but the background is soft and blurry, making the subject stand out against the back-ground (shallow DoF). 

25 Breathtaking Shallow Depth of Field Examples 

50mm prime lens with aperture f/1.4. Wide aperture, shallow depth of field.

If you want a camera that can take shallow DoF photos, you need a lens with a large aperture. Aperture is the size of the hole that the light goes through in the lens. It is a bit confusing because it is is measured with a number that is the opposite of what you would expect: a larger aperture (big hole) has a small number like f/1.4, f/2.0 etc, whereas a small aperture has a bigger number, like f/8, f/11, f/16, etc.

While a few Point-and-shoot cameras have quite large apertures, if this feature is important to you, there would be advantages in having a camera where you can change the lens, such as a DSLR or Mirrorless camera. Furthermore, ‘Prime lenses’ (not zooms) usually have wider apertures than Zoom lenses. Zoom lenses with wide apertures are often quite expensive and heavy.

4. Do you want to print your photos and hang them on a wall? Or only see and show them to others on a computer screen?

Printing a quality photo in any size is generally better from a larger file size, like 5 - 10 MB. A perfectly good photo on a computer screen only needs to be 100 KB. 

This question affects the degree to which you need to consider the sensor of the camera. Lots of sales-people tell you how many mega-pixels the camera has. It is really only relevant if you want to print large photos for wall hanging. 

5. Are you prepared to do some post-processing of your photos after you have taken them?

Even a small amount of computer time can dramatically improve your photos. Cropping, correcting horizons, and adjusting a few parameters of light and shade etc can make a huge difference. There are many people who actually have an adequate camera, and would get much more improvement from learning to take photos well and process them properly than they would by buying a new camera.

There are now several programs that help you do that easily. Two to check out are Lightroom and Luminar. 

Modern software is pretty sophisticated. You should plan on spending some time watching YouTube tutorials to learn how to use it.

If you get a camera with a large number of mega-pixels (say > 20 megapixels) and you are prepared to crop the photos later, then the case for a high-powered zoom lens is reduced. Zooms were really designed to enable film cameras to frame their photos at the time of the ‘click’. With bulk mega-pixels and post-processing, you can take a shot with a wider angle lens and crop it later.

6. Are you likely to get your camera wet, or want to shoot underwater?

Most cameras are vulnerable to water. Ones with ‘weather-sealing’ can cope with rain, but not going underwater.

There are only a few cameras that are able to go underwater, and if this is important to you, I recommend that you separate out this requirement from the other issues, and consider getting two cameras, one for normal use, and one ’Tough’ one for special wet purposes. The main ones to consider here are the GoPro, and the Olympus Tough range. Here is an article about waterproof cameras.

7. How much weight are you prepared to carry?

There is a point on the photography journey when people make a shift from:

    

    a) I’m going for a walk. Shall I take a camera?

        to:

    

    b) I’m going to do some photography. It will involve a walk. 

Size and weight are much more important to people in position (a). If you move to position (b), then you are happy to carry a backpack full of gear and a tripod, and, if necessary, lead a pack-horse.

8. Why do you want a camera?

When researching coffee-makers, I had an insight. The point of a coffee-maker is the cup of coffee. It is not primarily how it looks, or how simple and easy it is to make a brew. It is not important that it doubles as a toaster, vacuum cleaner or hifi. 

Its the coffee, stupid!

Similarly, the point of the camera is the photo. If you want to get more into photography, keep that in mind. The point of a camera is the photo it takes. Size, bells, whistles, etc are all secondary.

The great photographers in history have all used cameras which were much less sophisticated than relatively cheap cameras today. 

9. Read reviewers.

If you read the many articles on the Internet that address this question, you find a remarkable thing. The real experts all have different preferences! This reflects the fact that there are many good answers. Not just one.

Ken Rockwell has extensive reviews. He favours a bottom of the range Nikon DSLR like the D3500. Read his article; it explores many other options as well.

Trey Ratcliff  favours the Google Pixel 3 mobile phone and Sony Mirrorless cameras.

Andrew S. Gibson likes Fujifilm mirrorless cameras. His Creative Photographer site has lots of good tutorials.

10. My opinion?

I have been taking photos from childhood. A number of years ago I had a series of Canon EOS film SLRs, then when digital cameras came out I moved to a Nikon Coolpix 5700, a high-end Point & Shoot with an EVF. It took great photos, but was not easy to use. The viewfinder was tiny and fuzzy. You couldn’t easily see the subject. When you pressed the button, there was a significant delay before the camera clicked, while it worked out focus and exposure.

Next I moved to a DSLR, the Nikon D70. It was a bit heavier, but the viewfinder was optical, and when you pressed the shutter, action happened immediately. It was much more satisfying. My interest in photography surged. 

The next camera I got was a result of some bad luck. I had bought a JVC videocamera with optical image stabilisation which didn’t work. I asked for my money back. The shop complied, but in credit not cash. I thus had to spend a big lump of money on photography equipment, more than I otherwise would have justified. I spent it on a Nikon D300. What a beauty! 

The D70 and the D300 were both ‘crop-frame’ cameras, with 24mm sensors. Nikon calls them DX.

The plot behind all these improvements was to create a digital camera which was as good as a film camera, most of which have 35mm film. It was clear that sooner or later there would be some 35mm digital cameras (called ‘full-frame’, or FX by Nikon), and that eventually digital would surpass film. There were also a number of lenses on the second-hand market which would become more valuable once full-frame digital cameras came out. I started to buy some second-hand Nikon lenses in preparation for the day.

When the Nikon D800 came out, it was the dream fulfilled. I bought one immediately. Once more a major lift in performance. I was now hooked.

Finally the Nikon D850 arrived. The best camera in the world! (IMHO). 

Sometimes the system is a bit big, so I have recently ordered a Fujifilm X-E3 mirrorless camera with a couple of prime lenses (23mm f/2.0, and 50mm f/2.0) for candid and street photography.

Bottom line

We live in a time of dramatic advances in cameras. Sensors and software have improved greatly in the last few years. This means it is worth getting a relatively new camera, because the sensitivity of the sensor, its dynamic range, and quality of image will generally be better than an older camera. (Old lenses are often fine).

As my story illustrates, getting a camera for a higher level than you are at present may help you lift your game. Let a nice camera lead you on.

There is nothing (except expense) to stop you getting different cameras for different purposes.

Here are a few to check out.

Mobile phone: iPhone XR, XS or Google Pixel 3. Compared here. 

Waterproof camera. Olympus Tough TG-6

Point & Shoot. Sony Cyber-Shot DSC-RX100. Several versions compared. 

Mirrorless camera. FujiFilm X-T3. Other versions compared. Reviews here. Good article 'What Is the Best Mirrorless Camera for Beginners?'

Mirrorless Full-frame.  Sony A7R III. 

DSLR crop-frame (small sensor). Nikon D3500, Nikon D500.

DSLR Full-frame. Nikon D850. Reviews here. Canon 5D Mk IV. The two compared.

Software. My current pick is Luminar, and if you want to try High Dynamic Range (HDR) photography, Aurora HDR 2019.

Where to buy it?

Usually the best deals are to be found online. The best American sites are:

B & H,  Adorama,  and Amazon.  You need to factor in currency and postage.

The best Australian sites are:

Digital Camera Warehouse,  and Ted's Cameras.

Good overview article.

What is the Best Camera for Beginners?